Fastening device



amma in, 23,1940

, 2,208,779 rssrsnmc nsvrca George A. 'linnermanflbocky River, 'Ohio,as-

.lilnor, by. meme assignments, to'Tinnerman Products, Inci, Cleveland,Ohio, a corporation of em Original application October 14, 1936, SerialNo.

195,502, now Patent No. 2,184,783, dated December 26, 1939. Divided andthis application July'24, 1939, Serial No, 286,295 1 11 Claims. (Cl.85-2-4) This invention deals with fastening devices designed to be usedwith a bolt or screw fastening for connecting two parts together andrelates, more particularly, to such fastening devices as s adapted foruse in those locations where only one side of a part to be Joined isaccessible for making a connection. The present application is adivision of ccpending application Serial Number 105,502 flled'October14, 1936 and since issued as Patent Number 2,184,783, December 26,

1939. t An object of the present invention is to make a fastener whichmay be inserted in a bolt receiving aperture from the same side of thepart .l5 to be joined from which the bolt is intended to be introduced,and in addition to provide a fastener of this character which willremain automatically in bolt-receiving position. In'this relation, theinvention contemplates a fastener which may be attached readily to onearticle,

and which will remain in self-sustaining, boltreceiving position uponthe article during the time the article is being fitted-into. placewith.

respect to another article preparatory to the application of theboltthrough the fastener and tightened thereagainst to secure thearticles in assembled relation. In some instances, the fastener isintended not only to remain in self-sustaining position upon thearticle, but also to act as a supporting member for holding the secondarticle in'assembled position until the bolt is inserted therethrough.

Further objects and advantages and other new 7 and useful features inconstruction, operationand use of the fastening devices of the inventionwill be readily apparent to those skilled in the art .as a descriptionthereof proceeds'with reference to the accompanying drawing in whichlike reference characters designate -like parts 4 throughout,andjnwhich:

rigs, lto 3 inclusive illustrate one form of .thefas'tening-devicewhereinaFig. l is a top plan 7 viewloi' a blank of which the fastenermay be il ig. 2 is a vertical section taken through the fastener afterthe forming operation has been completed: r g

8, is asection taken'thr'oiliih the; fastener and the articles that aretobe Joined together,

50 showing the position of the-fastener after -'a bolt has been insertedtherethrough and drawn thereagainst; a a Fig. 1A is a topplan view of ablanksimllar to Fig. 1 with a modified-form of thread engaging 'Fig. 4is a vertical section through a fastener, illustrating .a modificationof; the arm construction of the fastener shown in Figs. 2 and .3': n

Fig. 5 is' a vertical section through. the fastener shown in Fig. 2taken on a plane indicated 5 byline 5-5; I I

Figs. 6 and .7 illustrate a further modification of the fastener,wherein Fig. 61s a top plan view of a blank, and Fig. 7 illustrates avertical section through a formed fastener; and, 10

Figs. 8 to 11 inclusiveillustratefurther modifications of the fastenerwherein Fig. 8 is a top plan view of a blank and Figs. 9 to 11 inclusiveare vertical sectionsillustrating various leg constructions" employed indiflerent forms of the lit fastener.

The various forms whichthe invention. may

take have a feature that is common to all of them. Such featurecomprises expansible portions, which engage in the bolt opening in the20- part to be Joined, or one or more places of the, part to be. joined,and thetension of the fastener .in bolt receiving position taking placeby means of the expansible characteristics of the metal of which thefastener is made. The expansible i'ea- 2 5 ture enables the. fastener tobe pushed into fastenlng position from the same side-of the part fromwhich the bolt isv inserted such that the connection may be. made-by anoperation taking place entirely from one side of the articles that soare to be joined together. 'By varying the sires and-shape of theexpansible portions,- the fitstener may be formed for use on'parts ofvariable thickness, wherefore one size of the fastener is adapted to fitinto many different assemblies, thus 35 obviating the necessity formaking a specific size for each assembly, as has been the practice ofprevious forms of self-positioning fasteners.

Referring now to the drawing in detaiL-the blank asshownin Fig.1comprises a section of 40 sheet metal having two orzmore arms I9 and IIproviding the expansible portions of the device; adjacent the junctionoi the arms, bolt-thread engaging means are stamped from the metal bodyand in the form illustrated-lung. 1, such means comprise opposingtongues It and it which are yieldable with reference-to the remainingportion of metal, and which have an opening I there betweenforreceiving-a shank ofa bolt, or other fastener. 1

- The blank otherwise is preferably provided in the manner of asubstantially cross-shaped sheet metal section including flanges ii, IIasshown in Fig. i. The armsflll, ll, comprisingthe ex- 1 pansibleportions of the device,---are bent dm. 1

be inserted. Said arms IO, N are formed in such relationship to the sizeof the opening in the part II to be joined that the normal tendency ofthe arms to spread is to hold the fastener inself-sustained; boltreceiving position upon the part. In this relation, inasmuch as the armsill,

II are bent downwardly and outwardly, the end portions thereof presentsubstantial shoulders which engage the underface of such part insubstantial snap fastening engagement therewith while the flanges l5,l6, rest upon the top surface of the part, thereby limiting the inwardmovement of the fastener thus applied to fastening position on saidpart.

Thus when a bolt is inserted through an opening in a part ID to beconnected and passed through the fastener as shown in Fig. 3, the shankof the bolt forces the arms I0, I l outwardly and into firm engagementwith the underface of the part I], while the yieldable bolt threadengaging means l2, B, Fig. l, grip the thread of the bolt and therebysecurely hold it in place. In the modification of Fig. 4, the arms Ill,ll extend downwardly and inwardly, instead of downwardly and outwardly,as in the form 11- lustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, but the locking actionincident to the application of the bolt fastening is substantially thesame.

.In the modification of Fig. 1A, the fastener blank has the same partsas those illustrated in Fig. 1, which are correspondingly made, exceptfor the fact that the thread engaging portion comprises acircularaperture 2|, which has a slot 22 extending therefrom. Th1. slot'therebyprovides substantial tongues 23 and 2|, which may be bent out of theplane of the blank until the marginal edge of the aperture 2| is causedto conform to the helix of the bolt thread for uniform threadedengagement therewith.

,The modification illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7 is similar to thatillustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive except for the fact that the blankis in strip form. To hold the fastener against the outer face of thepart 25, tabs 26, 21 are utilized which are formed from the strip bodynear the base of each of the bolt thread engaging tongues l2, It, toserve as substantial flanges limiting the inward movement of thefastener relative to such part; the position of the arms of the fastenerwith reference to the part upon insertion of the bolt fastening andcompletion of the fastening operation is substantially as illustrated inFig. 3.

The modifications of Fig. 8 to 11 inclusive may be formed from a stripprovided with lateral extensions 30 which operate in the manner ofsubstantial. flanges to engage one face of the part it and thereby limitthe inward movement of the fastener when the arms 32, 33 thereof extendthrough the part in applied fastening position. Each of the formsillustrated in Figs. 8 to 11 inclusive has a bolt-thread engagingportion -34 which may be yieldable, as shown in Fig. l, or semi-rigid,as is shown in Fig. 1A, and which may be disposed adjacent the plane ofthe extensions 30, but in each case, the shape of the arms 32, 33 issomewhat similar. In Fig. 9, for example, the arms 32, 33, extenddownwardly and inwardly, and in Fig. 10, they extend downwardly,

inwardly, and thence outwardly as at 34, 35, while in Fig. 11, the arms36, 31 extend downwardly. outwardly, and thence inwardly. In each case,the inwardly extending portions of the arms may be engaged by the bolt,and thereby forced outwardly into locking engagement with the part to bejoined.

Fasteners made in accordance with-the present invention may be made moreeconomically than any expansible fastener heretofore known, in-

asmuch as they may be formed from a single section of sheet metal withthe bolt thread engaging elements integrally provided from the blank ofwhich the fastener is made.

A further advantage of the present invention resides in the fact thatthe fastener .may be so designed as to engage the bolt in a manner toprovide a locked, theft-proof assembly, as is desired, for example, oncertain parts of motor vehicles. This is accomplished-by utilizingthread engaging means which are. so formed that the bolt thread is cutby the fastener as such thread engaging means are deformed into lockingengagement with the bolt when fully tightened, wherefore the bolt isrendered incapable of being disengaged by a. mere rotation in thereverse direction.

While this invention has been described in detail with specific examplessuch examples are illustrative only, since it will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that other modifications withinv the spirit and scopeof the invention may be constructed without departing from the teachingsor essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments aretherefore to be considered in all, respects as illustrative and not.restrictive,

the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims ratherthan by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within themeaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended tobe embraced therein.

What is claimed is:

l. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device adapted for use with a boltor screw threaded fastener comprising, a section of sheet metal bent toprovide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair of arms extending fromsaid body portion in the same general direction, said bolt receivingbody portion being provided with integral preformed thread engagingmeans and substantial flange means, said arms being designed to bereceived in an aperture in a part to be secured with said flange meansbearing thereon to limit the inward movement of the fastening device inapplied fastening position, said integral preformed thread engagingmeans comprising substantial tongues pressed from said body portion andthreadedly engagin the bolt fastener as it is advanced axially of thesheet metal fastening device to engage said arms and cause an expansionthereof into anchored engagement with said part, said preformed threadengaging means being adapted to be deformed into substantial locking,-engagement with the said bolt fastener in fully tightened position toprevent unscrewing and accidental removal thereof.

2. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device adapted for use with a boltor screw threaded fastener comprising, a section of ,sheet metal bent toprovide a pair of arms extending in are same general direction andspaced by an intermediate bolt receiving body portion, said boltreceiving body portion being provided with integral, preformed threadengaging-means and substantial flange means, said arms having theirlimiting the inward movement of the fastening device in appliedfastening position thereon, said preformed thread engaging meanscomprising substantial tongues pressed from said body portion andthreadedly engaging the bolt fastener as it is advanced axially toengage said arms and cause an expansion .thereof into anchoredengagement with said part, said thread engaging means being adapted tobe deformed intofisub- 'stantial locking engagement with the said boltfastener in fully tightened position toxprevent unscrewing andaccidental removal thereof.

3.'A one-piece sheet metal fastening deviceadapted for use with a bolto'rscrew threaded fastener comprising, a section of sheet metal bent toprovide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair of arms extending fromsaid body portion in. the same general direction, said bolt receiving'body portion being provided with integral preformed threadengaging'means and substantial flange means extending laterally of saidbody portion, said arms being designed to be received in an aperture ina part to be secured with said laterally extending flange means bearingthereon to limit the inward inovement of the fastening devicein appliedfastening position, said integral preformed thread engaging meanscomprising substantial tongues pressed from said body portion andthreadedly engaging the bolt fastener as it is advanced axially ofthesheet metal fastening device-to engage said arms and cause an expansionthereof into anchored engagement with said part, said thread engagingmeans being adapted .to be deformed into substantial locking engagementwith the said bolt fastener in fully tightened position to preventunscrewing and accidentalremoval thereof.

4. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device adapted for. use with a boltor screw threaded fastener comprising,- a section of sheet metal bent toprovide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair ofarms extending fromsaid body portion 'in" the same general direction, said bolt receivingbody portion being provided with integral,

preformed thread engaging means and substantial flange means. comprisingat least one flange element struck from the sheet metal section adjacentsaid body portion, said arms being designed to be received in anaperture in a part to be secured with said flange means limiting theinward movement of the fastening device in applied fastening positionthereon, said preformed thread engaging means being designed tothreadedly engage the bolt fastener as it is advanced axially to causean expansion of said arms into anchored engagement with said part.

5. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device adapted. for use with a boltor screw threaded fastener comprising, a section of sheet 'metal bent toprovide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair of arms extending fromsaid body portion in the same general direction, said bolt receivingbody portion being provided with integral, preformedthread engagingmeans and substantial flange means comprising elements struck from thesheet metal section adjacent said body portion to pro- }Lect laterallyof said arms, said arms being designed to be received in an aperture ina partto be secured with said flange means limiting the inward movementof the fastening device in applied fastening position. thereongsaidpreformed thread engaging means being adapted to threadedly engage thebolt fastener as it isadvanced #3 8, free ends designed to be receiv edin an aperture in a part to be secured with said flange means axiallyto-engage saidarms and cause an expansion thereof intoanchoredengagement with said -part, said thread engaging means being adapted tobe deformed into substantial locking engagement with the said boltfastener'in fully tightened position to prevent unscrewing andaccidental removal thereof,

6. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device adapted for use with a boltor screw threaded fastener comprising, a section ofsheetmetal bent toprovide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair of arms extending fromsaid body portion in the same general direction, said bolt receivingbody portion being provided with integral, preformed thread engagingmeans and substantial 5 flange means projecting laterally of said bodyportion, said arms having inwardly extending portionsspaced apart adistance less than the thickness of the bolt shank and being designed tobe with said flange means limiting the inward movement of the fasteningdevice in applied fastening position thereon, said preformed threadengaging means comprising substantial tongues pressed from said bodyportion and threadedly;

engaging the bolt fastener as it is advanced axially to engage saidinwardly extending portions of thearms to cause an expansion of saidarms into anchored engagement with said part, said thread engaging meansbeing adapted to be de--- formed into substantial locking engagementwith,

.the said bolt fastener in fully tightened position to preventunscrewing and accidental removal thereof.

7. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device-- adapted for use with abolt or screw threaded fastener comprising, a section of sheet metalbent to provide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair of armsextending from said body portion in. the same general direction, saidbolt receiving. body portion being provided with integral, preformedthread engaging means and substantial flange'means comprising lateralextensions ad- 'jacent said body portion, said arms having inwardlyextending portions spaced apart a dis-' tance less than the thickness ofthe bolt shank and being designed to be received in an aper-- ture in apart to be secured with said flange fully tightened position 'to preventunscrewing and accidental removal thereof.

8. A one-piece sheet metal fastening device adapted for use with a boltor screw threaded fastener comprising, a section of sheet metal bent toprovide a bolt receiving body portion and a pair ofarms .extending fromsaid body portion in the same general direction,

said bolt receiving body portion being provided with integral, preformedthread engaging means andsubstantial flange means comprising elementsstruck from the sheet metal section to project laterally of said bodyportion, said arms having inwardly extending portions spaced apart adistance less than the thickness of the bolt shank and being designed tobe received in an aperture in 'a part received in an aperture in a partto be secured? to be secm'ed with said flange means limiting the inwardmoyementof the fastening device in applied fastening position thereon,said preformed thread engaging means comprising substantial tonguesstruck from said body portion for threadedly engaging the bolt fasteneras it is advanced axially to engage said inwardly extending. portions ofthe arms and thereby cause an expansion of said arms into anchoredengagement with said part, saidthread engaging means being adapted to bedeformed into substantial locking engagement with the said bolt fastenerin fully tightened position to prevent unscrewing and accidental removalthereof.

9. A fastener having means for engaging a cooperating stud fasteningdevice and means for attaching the fastener in an aperture in a part tobe secured, said fastener comprising a sheet metalsection defining astud receiving body portion intermediate a pair of cooperating attachingelements, said body portion carrying stud engaging means and includingflange means directly attached thereto adapted to overlap an edge ofsaid aperture and engage a face of said part in attached position, saidcooperating attaching elements extending from said body portion in thesame general direction from one surface thereof and being adapted toenter the aperture in saidpart to attached position by substantial snapfastening engagement in said aperture, and means carried by at least oneof said attaching elements for engaging an opposite face of said part tocooperate with said flange means on the body portion of the fastener inretaining the fastener in such attached position thereon.

10. A fastener having means for engaging a cooperatingbolt or screwfastening device and means for attaching the fastener in an aperture ina part to be secured, said fastener comprising a sheet metal sectiondefining a bolt receiving aaosma body portion-intermediate a pair ofcooperating attaching elements, bolt or screw thread engaging meanscarried by said body portion, and flange means on said body portion ateither side of said thread engaging means adapted to overlap an edgeof'said aperture in attached posttion. said cooperating attachingelements extending from said body portion to project from' the samesurface thereof and being spaced apart to en the aperture in said partto attached position by substantial snap fastening engagement in saidaperture, and means provided on at least one of d attaching elementsadapted to cooperate with said flange means on the body portion of thefastener at opposite faces of said part to retain the fastener insuchattached position thereon.

11. A fastener having means for engaging a cooperating bolt or screwfastening device and means for attaching thefastener in an aperture in apart to be secured, said fastener comprising a sheet metal sectiondefining a body portion having a bolt receiving opening intermediate apair of cooperating attaching elements, bolt or screw threadengagingmeans carried by said body portion adjacent said opening, and flangemeans on said body portion adapted to overlap an edge of said apertureand engage a face of said part in attached position, said cooperatingattaching elements extending from said body portion in the same generaldirection from one surface thereof and being spaced apart to enter theaperture in said part toattached position by substantial snap fasteningengagement in said aperture, and means carried by at least one of saidattaching elements for engaging an opposite face of said part tocooperate with said flange means on the body portion of the fastener inretaining the fastener in such attached position thereon.

GEORGE A. TINNERMAN.

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